Bristol scientists discover early sponges were soft (IMAGE)

University of Bristol

Bristol scientists discover early sponges were soft

Caption

The diversity of sponges and their spicules. Sponges were the first reef builders and maintain a fundamental role in modern marine ecosystems.

Credit

From Top left to bottom right: The barrel sponge (Xestospongia testudinaria)is by Albert Kok at Dutch Wikipedia - Transferred from nl.wikipedia to Commons., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3017391. The demosponge spicules are by Ana Riesgo. The tube sponge (Pseudoceratina crassa) is by NURC/UNCW and NOAA/FGBNMS. - NOAA Photo Library: expl0628, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=17967456. The Branching tube sponge (Aiolochroia crassa) is by iNaturalist user: thibaudaronson - https://www.inaturalist.org/photos/12359922, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=89131968.

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